November 2016 - On the 25th anniversary
of the
Santa Cruz massacre, the East Timor and
Indonesia
Action Network (ETAN) urges the international
community to commit to ending impunity for the human
rights crimes committed during the occupation of
Timor-Leste.

"The victims of the Santa Cruz massacre have waited
too long for justice," said John M. Miller, National
Coordinator of ETAN. “Those responsible for crimes
against humanity and war crimes during Indonesia’s
illegal occupation need to be held accountable for
their crimes.”

"We believed that
an international tribunal is needed to credibly try
those responsible for the Santa Cruz massacre and
other crimes against humanity and war crimes
committed by Indonesia during its illegal occupation
of Timor-Leste," Miller added

.

The victims of
the Santa Cruz massacre have waited too long
for justice. Those responsible for crimes
against humanity and war crimes during
Indonesia’s illegal occupation need to be
held accountable for their crimes.

On November 12, 1991, U.S.-armed
Indonesian troops opened fire on a peaceful
pro-independence demonstration calling for
self-determination and protesting atrocities
committed by the Indonesian military. More than 271
East Timorese were killed or died soon after and an
equal number disappeared and are believed to be
dead.

The 1991 massacre -- witnessed and filmed by foreign
journalists -- was a major turning point in
Timor-Leste's struggle for liberation.

During more than two decades of U.S.-backed
occupation, Indonesian soldiers committed serious
crimes with impunity, taking as many as 184,000
Timorese lives and torturing, raping, and displacing
countless others. Timor-Leste became independent in
2002.

"The East Timorese people will need to know the
where thebodies
oftheir
relatives and friends are," said Miller. "Impunity
for decades of systematic Indonesian military and
police atrocities prevents both Timor-Leste and
Indonesia from consolidating the rule of law as they
transition from military dictatorship to democracy."

While some deeply flawed processes have prosecuted
some involved in crimes committed in 1999, those
responsible for giving the orders to torture, rape,
and kill have yet to be brought to justice. Those
from countries such as the United States, Britain,
and Australia that actively aided in these crimes by
providing weapons, training, and political support
have yet to be held accountable.

ETAN continues to call on President Joko Widodo to
fulfill his campaign promise to address human rights
violations committed during and after the Suharto
dictatorship, including by establishing credible
judicial processes to investigate killings like the
Santa Cruz massacre.

ETAN is "A voice
of reason, criticizing the administration's reluctance to
address ongoing human rights violations and escalating
oppression in West Papua and against religious minorities
throughout Indonesia."